Finding the right counter at city hall | Learn Dutch in English

About This Lesson

Use Finding the right counter at city hall to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Ik ben nog nooit in dit gemeentehuis geweest.

ick ben nokh noyt in dit khuh-MAYN-tuh-hoys khuh-VAYST. I have never been inside this city hall before.

Het gebouw is mooier dan ik had verwacht.

uht khuh-BOW iss MOY-er dahn ick hutt ver-VAHKHT. The building is nicer than I expected.

De ingang is naast de fietsenstalling.

duh IN-ahng iss nahst duh FEET-suhn-STAH-ling. The entrance is beside the bicycle parking area.

Veel mensen zijn met de fiets gekomen.

VAYL MEN-suhn zayn met duh feets khuh-KOH-muhn. A lot of people came by bike.

Dat is logisch.

DAHT iss LOH-khiss. That makes sense.

Het is makkelijker dan op de bus wachten.

uht iss MAH-kuh-luh-ker dahn op duh buhs WAKH-tuhn. It is easier than waiting for the bus.

Volgende keer kunnen we hier ook naartoe fietsen.

VOL-khuhn-duh kayr KUH-nuhn wuh HEER ohk nahr-TOO FEET-suhn. Next time, we could ride here too.

Dan kunnen we de fietsen dicht bij de ingang zetten.

DAHN KUH-nuhn wuh duh FEET-suhn DIKHT beye duh IN-ahng ZET-uhn. Then we can leave the bikes close to the entrance.

Voor nu gaan we naar binnen en zoeken we de juiste balie.

vohr noo khahn wuh nahr BIN-uhn uhn ZOO-kuhn wuh duh YOW-stuh BAH-lee. For now, let's go inside and find the right counter.

Word by Word

Ik “Ik” means “I” here and identifies the person speaking about the experience. It is used as the subject when referring to oneself.

ben “ben” means “am” here and links “Ik” with the experience described by “geweest.” It appears in the opening statement about having been inside the city hall.

nog “nog” contributes to the meaning “never before” together with “nooit.” In “nog nooit,” it strengthens the reference to an experience that has not happened before.

nooit “nooit” means “never” here. Together with “nog,” it describes an experience that has not happened at any earlier time.

in “in” means “in” or “inside” and marks the interior of “dit gemeentehuis.” It is useful for describing where someone has been inside a place.

dit “dit” means “this” and points to the specific city hall being discussed. It appears directly before “gemeentehuis” in “dit gemeentehuis.”

gemeentehuis “gemeentehuis” means “city hall,” the public building the speakers are visiting. It names the place after “dit” in “dit gemeentehuis.”

geweest “geweest” means “been” here and completes the experience expression with “ben.” It is used when saying that someone has been in a particular place.

Het “Het” means “the” here and introduces the specific building being discussed. It appears before “gebouw” in “Het gebouw.”

gebouw “gebouw” means “building” and refers to the city hall as a physical structure. It is the subject of the statement describing how the building looks.

is “is” means “is” and links “Het gebouw” with the description “mooier.” It is useful for stating a current characteristic of a person, place, or thing.

mooier “mooier” means “nicer” or “more beautiful” and compares the building with the speaker’s expectation. The comparison is completed by “dan ik had verwacht.”

dan “dan” means “than” and introduces the other side of the comparison. It appears in the exact comparison “mooier dan ik had verwacht.”

had “had” helps refer to the expectation already held before the comparison. It appears with “verwacht” in “ik had verwacht,” a useful construction for describing an earlier expectation.

verwacht “verwacht” means “expected” here and states what the speaker had expected about the building. It appears after “had” in “ik had verwacht.”

De “De” means “the” here and introduces the specific entrance being located. It appears before “ingang” in “De ingang.”

ingang “ingang” means “entrance” and identifies the way into the building. Here it is the place located beside the bicycle parking area.

naast “naast” means “beside” or “next to” and describes the entrance’s location. It is followed by “de fietsenstalling” in “naast de fietsenstalling.”

fietsenstalling “fietsenstalling” means “bicycle parking area,” the place where bicycles are parked. It is the location reference after “naast.”

Veel “Veel” means “many” or “a lot of” and gives the quantity of people. It appears before “mensen” in “Veel mensen.”

mensen “mensen” means “people” and refers to the group who came by bike. It follows “Veel” to form the quantity phrase “Veel mensen.”

zijn “zijn” works with “gekomen” here to say that the people came or arrived. The phrase “zijn met de fiets gekomen” links the people with arriving by bike.

met “met” means “by” here and introduces the means of transport in “met de fiets.” It is useful for saying how someone travels.

fiets “fiets” means “bike” in “met de fiets,” which means “by bike.” It names the means of transport after “met.”

gekomen “gekomen” means “came” here and completes the expression with “zijn.” It describes the people’s arrival in the phrase “met de fiets gekomen.”

Dat “Dat” means “that” and points back to the idea just mentioned. In “Dat is logisch,” it introduces an agreement or evaluation of the previous statement.

logisch “logisch” means “logical” or “makes sense” here and shows that the previous idea seems understandable. It is useful for agreeing with a reason or conclusion.

makkelijker “makkelijker” means “easier” and compares cycling with waiting for the bus. It appears before “dan” in “makkelijker dan op de bus wachten.”

op “op” means “for” in the exact phrase “op de bus wachten.” It comes before what someone is waiting for in this expression.

bus “bus” means “bus” and names the transport people would wait for. It appears in “op de bus wachten,” meaning “wait for the bus.”

wachten “wachten” means “wait” here and describes the alternative to cycling. In “op de bus wachten,” it is used with “op” and the thing being waited for.

Volgende “Volgende” means “next” and describes a later time or occasion. It appears before “keer” in “Volgende keer,” meaning “next time.”

keer “keer” means “time” or “occasion” in “Volgende keer.” The phrase refers to a later visit or opportunity to do something.

kunnen “kunnen” expresses a possible plan or option here, translated as “could.” In “kunnen we hier ook naartoe fietsen,” it introduces what the speakers may do together.

we “we” means “we” and refers to the speaker and the other person together. It is the subject of the possible plan involving cycling to the city hall.

hier “hier” means “here” and identifies the current place as the destination. In “hier naartoe fietsen,” it means cycling to this place.

ook “ook” means “also” or “too” and adds cycling as another possible way to come. In “hier ook naartoe fietsen,” it says that the speakers could do this as well.

naartoe “naartoe” expresses movement toward a destination. Together with “hier” in “hier naartoe fietsen,” it means moving or cycling to this place.

fietsen “fietsen” means “cycle” or “ride by bike” here. It is the action that follows “kunnen” in “hier ook naartoe fietsen,” describing travel by bicycle to a destination.

dicht “dicht” means “close” and describes the distance from the bikes to the entrance. It appears with “bij” in “dicht bij de ingang.”

bij “bij” means “near” or “close to” and identifies the location of the bikes. The exact pattern here is “dicht bij de ingang.”

zetten “zetten” means “put” or “leave” here, referring to placing the bikes near the entrance. It takes “de fietsen” as its object in “de fietsen dicht bij de ingang zetten.”

Voor “Voor” means “for” in the time expression “Voor nu.” It limits the suggestion to the present moment or immediate situation.

nu “nu” means “now” and refers to the current moment. Together with “Voor,” it forms “Voor nu,” meaning “for now.”

gaan “gaan” means “go” and announces the speakers’ next movement. In “gaan we naar binnen,” it describes going inside together.

naar “naar” expresses direction toward a place in “naar binnen.” It is useful for indicating movement toward a destination or area.

binnen “binnen” means “inside” and is the destination in “naar binnen.” The phrase describes entering the building from outside.

en “en” means “and” and connects the actions of going inside and looking for the counter. It joins the two actions in the final sentence.

zoeken “zoeken” means “look for” or “find” here and describes looking for the correct counter. In “zoeken we de juiste balie,” it is followed by the thing being sought.

juiste “juiste” means “right” or “correct” and identifies which counter the speakers need. It appears before “balie” in “de juiste balie.”

balie “balie” means “counter” or “service desk” and refers to the place the visitors need to find inside the city hall. It is the object of “zoeken” in the final sentence.

Grammar Points

Comparative adjective: adjective + -er

Het gebouw is mooier.

uht khuh-BOW iss MOY-er.

The building is nicer.

Dutch maakt veel vergelijkingen met -er: mooi wordt mooier en makkelijk wordt makkelijker.

hier naartoe fietsen

We fietsen hier naartoe.

wuh FEET-suhn HEER nahr-TOO.

We cycle here.

Naartoe geeft een richting naar een plaats aan. Hier naartoe betekent ‘naar deze plek’.

Dutch Vocabulary

bus noun

buhs bus

fiets noun

feets bike; bicycle

fietsenstalling noun

FEET-suhn-STAH-ling bicycle parking area

gebouw noun

khuh-BOW building

gemeentehuis noun

khuh-MAYN-tuh-hoys city hall

ingang noun

IN-ahng entrance

logisch adj

LOH-khiss logical; makes sense

makkelijker adj

MAH-kuh-luh-ker easier

mensen noun

MEN-suhn people

mooier adj

MOY-er nicer

naast prep

nahst beside; next to

veel det

VAYL many; a lot of

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

The entrance is beside the bicycle parking area.

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De ingang is naast de fietsenstalling.

That makes sense.

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Dat is logisch.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

many; a lot of

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veel

beside; next to

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naast

bike; bicycle

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fiets

entrance

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ingang